Discussion Board Forum 4 – Reply B
Justin T. Hargett
Singapore Airlines: Flying to Success
The success of Singapore Airlines (SIA) is based on a multitude of factors, but has taken
flight mostly on the wings of its people. Led by a clear vision, mission, goals, and core pillars,
SIA has been able to transform from a small start-up airline to a global giant with a multitude of
success. SIA recognized that they would have trouble competing in the airline market if they
were not able to stand out from the rest. In an effort to set themselves apart, they developed a
core mission of taking care of their customers both internally and externally. The high quality of
customer service has led SIA to be an award-winning organization and one of the fastest growing
and well-liked airlines in the industry.
Main Ingredients of Success
A Clear Vision and Mission
SIA set forth a clear vision and mission to be service driven and deliver the highest
quality of service to its customers. They had clearly defined goals of wowing customers and
becoming the world’s best airline (Jick & Peiperl, 2010). SIA also understood the changing
dynamics of the airline industry, the ever-encroaching competition, and the principles of business
that needed to be applied. “SIA planned to achieve its goals with a ‘three pillar’ strategy of
superior inflight service, the most modern fleet, and outstanding ground service.” (Jick &
Peiperl, 2010, p. 536). This set of pillars led to SIA developing a “sustained service innovation”
(Tuzovic, et al., 2018, p. 35) that has followed them throughout the last forty plus years.
Superior Inflight Service
SIA recognized that superior service was the path to competitive advantage and they
needed to be deliberate with maximizing this advantage (Jick & Peiperl, 2010). With no
government subsidies and a small to non-existent domestic market (Jick & Peiperl, 2010), SIA
had to make waves in the industry through the methodical marketing of their quality and
customer service. Jick & Peiperl (2010), further elaborate that SIA set market trends by being the
first to offer in-flight amenities that their competitors charged for. They also strategically
developed their brand and brand recognition through the implementation of the “Singapore Girl”
(flight attendant), which remains a staple of SIA’s marketing strategy today. While there have
been some questionable discriminatory practices regarding the selection and retention of the
Singapore Girls, the internal competition to become a Singapore Girl drove increased customer
service excellence. SIA’s staff are also well-known for referring to customers by name, offering
the finest amenities, and even offering to assist with children (Jick & Peiperl, 2010).
The Most Modern Fleet
With SIA’s extreme focus on customer service and comfort, they needed to maintain a
modern and well cared for fleet of aircraft. The continuous upgrading of the fleet and the
superior quality of flight service, landed SIA in many magazines and awards categories (Jick &
Peiperl, 2010). This constant recognition of quality led customers to SIA time and time again.
SIA was not risk adverse. In fact, SIA were risk takers. The purchase of new planes at a
rate unmatched by the rest of the industry, exposed SIA to significant risk. However, SIA
continued to grow and was able to bring the newest technologies and amenities to the market.
The newer planes allowed customers to have an entertainment experience not seen on other
airliners and were one of the first to introduce in flight internet access for passengers (Jick &
Peiperl, 2010).
Outstanding Service on the Ground
This was the most difficult area for SIA to innovate and improve because of the nature of
the ground service and many external factors that SIA could not control. However, SIA promoted
above and beyond service and stretched the norms and comfort zones of the employees and the
organization. Through the implementation of bold goals and strategies SIA was able to turn
ground service into a successful venture in customer service. One of the key factors to this
success was the clear communication of the goals and priorities to all the staff alike,
Leadership Practices
Another ingredient of success was the practices of the leadership at SIA. Through the
promotion of a strong corporate culture that appealed to multi-cultural clients and employees
alike, they were able to balance the approach to the global market (Jick & Peiperl, 2010). The
leadership team implemented clear policies, procedures, and practices that mirrored the mission
and vision, while allowing for continuous innovative growth, aggressive recruitment, and
constant training. SIA recognized the value in recruiting the right people, who aligned with the
organizational culture and values (Jick & Peiperl, 2010). They also cherished training and
exceeded industry standards in their training and leadership development practices.
Employee Engagement
SIA also believed in engaging the employee and delegating autonomy and authority to
enable them to be innovative and do what was right for the customer. This practice was the
conduit for the SIA employees to carry out the mission and vision. They promote flexibility and
creativity amongst all staff, which boosts the commitment and engagement of the employees
(Jick & Peiperl, 2010). According to the findings of Tuzovic, et al. (2018),
SIA built and nurtured a strong innovation climate, driven by leadership that consistently over
decades emphasized the importance of innovation to retain SIA’s industry-leading position. This
forceful emphasis on innovation by SIA’s leadership resulted in a strong innovation culture that
transcended the entire organization. (p. 38).
Satisfaction
Satisfaction of the customer and the staff are of vital importance for SIA. They ensure
staff satisfaction through the previously discussed employee engagement practices as well as
through staff recognition and rewards. There are a multitude of ways in which SIA rewards its
employees, but the end goal is keeping employees satisfied, customer focused, and innovative.
They also monitor customer satisfaction closely through high-level reviews of complaints and
compliments, customer satisfaction surveys, and through performance metric measurements. SIA
responds to each customer individually and utilizes feedback and improvement models to make
changes within the organization (Jick & Peiperl, 2010).
Success Vulnerabilities
While SIA has become very successful across all aspects of its business, it has also become
vulnerable. There are several reasons for its vulnerability, but SIA continues to innovate and
overcome many of these challenges. Some of the areas of vulnerability are rapid growth/ labor
and recruitment problems, increased competition, rising costs, and increasing customer demands.
Rapid Growth/Labor & Recruitment
One of the most significant vulnerabilities facing SIA is the rapid growth of the company.
Rapid growth sometimes leads to mergers and acquisitions which were not on the horizon for
SIA. SIA leadership wanted to maintain the course of its mission and vision and had to navigate
many of the obstacles of growth to continue on that path (Jick & Peiperl, 2010). The rapid
growth of SIA also led to recruitment issues with being able to maintain the highly selective and
predominately Singaporean employee base. Rapid growth can also stunt innovation if not
carefully managed because time and resources are diverted to new and emerging areas of the
business.
Competition & Rising Costs
Other airlines took notice of the practices of SIA and began to implement some of their
strategies which led to tighter competition and the need for continual innovation from SIA. The
demands placed on the industry due to rising fuel costs, the post 9/11 era, and pandemics (Jick &
Peiperl, 2010), also compete for the resources of SIA and divert them away from their customer
service initiatives. Another challenge facing SIA on the ground was the management of airport
terminals by their competitors and leaving customer satisfaction in the hands of direct
competitors such as British Airways who controlled the ground agents at London’s Heathrow
Airport (Jick & Peiperl, 2010).
Increasing Customer Demands
As in other customer service businesses, the demands from the customers are ever
increasing. The more satisfaction that is gained through excellent customer service leads to
increased demands for even better service. This again leads to the need to be innovative and
creative with the approach to customer service. It also directly affects the relationships of rising
costs and the competitive advantage sought by being the best customer service provider in the
industry.
Difficulties Maintaining Leadership Roles
As noted in the success vulnerabilities there are significant challenges facing companies like
SIA. The ability to grow, innovate, provide excellent service, cut costs, and recruit great talent,
while maintaining profitable margins is seemingly impossible. Leadership roles are the lynchpins
to success in these organizations, but are also the responsible party when things go wrong. When
large companies like SIA do well, the leaders do well. However, when things don’t go as
planned, the leaders often find themselves on the hunt for a new job. Another factor that may
affect even the most successful leader is the stress of the job. The pressure, long hours, constant
stress, and numerous other influences can lead to the resignation of the leader in these roles.
Continuous Change
Aside from SIA, other world-class organizations must also improve and change continuously.
These organizations must clearly define a mission and vision, set goals and benchmarks, and
focus on employee and customer satisfaction. While all of these are essential, continuous
innovation not only in their industry must occur, but also in each of the elements listed. SIA has
been a flagship company for leading by example in showing how continuous change can benefit
the company According to the research of Wirtz & Zeithaml (2017) companies must implement a
strategy that that focuses on service excellence and cost effectiveness in order to outperform and
outlast their competitors in industry.
Biblical Integration
As followers of Christ business leaders are called to model the principles of customer
service, being good stewards of resources, and loving and caring for one another. 1 Peter 4:8-11
is a great example of how the Christian business leader should lead and set an example. The
scripture says,
8 Above all, keep loving one another earnestly, since love covers a multitude of sins. 9 Show
hospitality to one another without grumbling. 10 As each has received a gift, use it to serve one
another, as good stewards of God's varied grace: 11 whoever speaks, as one who speaks oracles
of God; whoever serves, as one who serves by the strength that God supplies—in order that in
everything God may be glorified through Jesus Christ. To him belong glory and dominion
forever and ever. Amen. (English Standard Version Bible, 2001/2016, 1 Peter 4:8-11).
Peter provides a powerful message here and sets the standards for customer service with the
main focus being on glorifying God. If every business took this approach, there would be no
customer service issues at all!
Continuous change also calls for endurance. The author of Hebrews reminds the believer
that looking to Jesus we can run the race with endurance and protection (English Standard
Version Bible, 2001/2016, Hebrews 12:1-2). James also reminds of this principle as well. James
1:2-4 says, “2 Count it all joy, my brothers, when you meet trials of various kinds, 3 for you
know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness. 4 And let steadfastness have its full
effect, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing.” (English Standard Version
Bible, 2001/2016, James 1:2-4).
References
English Standard Version Bible. (2016). ESV Bible Online. https://www.esv.org/ (Original work
published 2001)
Jick, T. D., & Peiperl, M. (2010). Module six: Continuous change. In Managing change: Cases
and concepts (3rd ed., pp. 535-552). McGraw-Hill Education.
Tuzovic, S., Wirtz, J., & Heracleous, L. (2018). How do innovators stay innovative? A
longitudinal case analysis. Journal of Services Marketing, 32(1), 34-45.
https://doi.org/10.1108/jsm-02-2017-0052
Wirtz, J., & Zeithaml, V. (2017). Cost-effective service excellence. Journal of the Academy of
Marketing Science, 46(1), 59-80. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11747-017-0560-7
REPLY
Hello Justin,
Your post was incredibly detailed and brought up points that although I highly enforce as the HR
Liaison in my department, I did not mention in my very own post.
One of your key points is the fact that SIA had a clear vision and mission which focused on
providing the best flight experience possible, on every flight for every customer. “We have a high
reputation for service and that means that when someone flies with us, they come with high
expectations. Still, we want them to come away saying “Wow! That was something out of the
ordinary”! ( (Jick, Toddy D & Peiprel, Maury A, 2011, p. 535). A company’s vision and mission
should be centered around organizational core values which never change even if operations do
and even less when faced with challenges, as in the case of SIA. They maintained their values
through keeping their vision and mission at the front of their business. “More than that, I count
all things to be loss in view of the surpassing value of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whom I
have suffered the loss of all things, and count them but rubbish so that I may gain Christ,”
(Philippians 3:8, ESV).
Another key point you made the importance of employee engagement in SIA’s culture. “This
practice was the conduit for the SIA employees to carry out the mission and vision” (Jick et al.,
2011). One-way SIA kept employees engaged was through training. This is a concept many
organizations fail to understand. Training employees not only keeps them engaged, but it
increases their performance level which results in more success for the organization. Trainings
are provided by organizations to bring up the level of performance in their employees. “Most of
the firms, by applying long-term planning, invest in building new skills, knowledge and
changing the attitudes of their workforce, enabling them to cope with the uncertainties that they
may face in future, thus improving employee performance” (Sendaula, Kimuli, Banauka, &
Mugana, 2018, p. 3). The degree to which an employee’s performance is measured, depends on
how committed they feel towards the organization, and the organizational values. “An engaged
employee is aware of business context and works with colleagues to improve performance within
the job for the benefit of the organization” (Sendaula et al., 2018, p. 4).
Scripture speaks often about training/teaching such as in Proverbs 9:9 “Instruct the wise and they
will be wiser still; teach the righteous and they will add to their learning” and Proverbs 11:25 “A
generous person will prosper; whoever refreshes others will be refreshed” (ESV). In relation to
engagement, employees simply need to think of one thing to feel engaged/motivated in their
jobs: “Morover, this is the gift of God: that all people should eat, drink, and enjoy the results of
their hard work” (Ecclesiastes 3:15, CEB).
I really enjoyed reading your post and appreciate your effort to make such good points.
References
Jick, Todd D & Peiprel, Maury, A (2011). Managaing Change - Cases and Concepts. New York: McGraw-
Hill .
Sendaula, Kasimu, Kimuli, Saadat Nakyejwi, Banauka, Juma, & Mugana, Grace Najjemba (2018,
January). Training, employee engagement and employeeperformance: Evidence from Uganda’s
healthsector. Cogent Business and Management, 51, 1-12. Retrieved October 5, 2020, from
https://search-proquest-com.ezproxy.liberty.edu/docview/2176697990?pq-origsite=summon
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